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Michelle Donnellan faces a new five-figure repayment demand after the government admitted the total cost of the defamation case against her was more than double what was previously thought. ing.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) announced on Thursday that legal costs piling up on behalf of the Science Secretary for falsely accusing two academics of supporting Hamas have cost the public an extra £19,000.
This is on top of £15,000 in damages she had to pay to one of her academics, which was first revealed. I last month. This brings the total cost to taxpayers in Mr Donnellan’s defamation case to more than £34,000.
DSIT senior official Sarah Munby said in a letter to shadow science secretary Peter Kyle on Thursday that the government had racked up a bill of £7,785 for internal legal advice. She also revealed that she had sought external private legal advice, costing her an additional £11,600.
DSIT had previously refused to disclose legal costs in the case and on Monday rejected a Freedom of Information request sent by DSIT. I Last month, it requested total legal costs.The station reported I A one-month extension was needed to conduct a “public interest test” to determine whether the figures should be made public.
Mr Kyle said: “It’s a slap in the face to hard-working families across the country that more than £34,000 of taxpayers’ money has been wasted due to the unprofessional and defamatory behavior of Tory ministers.” .
He added: “Michelle Donnellan should have had the decency to pay that money back to the taxpayer rather than try to hide the true cost of her actions.”
Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “This story reeks of a rotten cover-up centered around Mr Donnellan.”
“Michelle Donnellan must pay this money back now. People’s tax dollars should not be used to bail out disgraced Tory ministers,” she said.
come later I It was revealed last month that the taxpayer had claimed £15,000 in compensation on Mr Donnellan’s behalf after the Science Secretary falsely accused two academics of holding “extreme” views.
In October, the Science Secretary falsely accused two academics on the Nationally Funded Research Agency’s advisory group of supporting Hamas and called for their suspension in a letter to the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Secretary. . Mr Donnellan also published the letter in X.
Last month, UKRI cleared two academics of wrongdoing following an independent investigation and invited them to resume their roles on its advisory board.
DSIT said Mr Donnellan himself did not have to pay any costs as the letter was sent in his capacity as a minister and was signed by a government lawyer.
However, questions remain as to whether the department was monitoring academics on the UKRI board. I It was revealed last year that Ms Donnellan’s special adviser at DSIT had produced an 11-page document cataloging three years’ worth of social media activity by one of its academics, following a request for further information from the Science Secretary.
It included an extensive list of posts by academics supporting transgender rights, Black Lives Matter, the lecturers’ strike, and criticism of No.10.
The document is divided into three sections titled “Anti-racism” and supports Black Lives Matter, “transgender advocacy” and the “militant left” including posts supporting strike action. The post is highlighted.
The government claimed that I Ms Donnellan was seeking information about several scholars, and at the time this was the only document of its kind.
DSIT has been contacted for comment.